Page 54 of Stripe for the Picking
Wren's stomach lurched. "Rylan will come for me. You're underestimating him."
Arvox chuckled, a low, humorless sound that sent shivers through her. "Oh, I doubt he'll have the time. Defense Nexus is about to be under attack. My special operatives are en route as we speak. Rylan will have his hands full defending his precious facility. By the time he realizes you're missing, we'll be long gone."
Wren glanced out the back window and saw a convoy of black vans speeding toward Defense Nexus. This wasn't just a kidnapping—it was a full-scale attack. She turned back to Arvox, her voice sharp with accusation. "Why are you doing this? What do you want?"
Arvox's smirk widened, and he leaned back in his seat, his posture relaxed, as if they were having a casual conversation. "Well, first off, I found out about your little meeting with the Council leader yesterday. My sources are quite reliable, you see. Trying to expose me? To have me arrested? That's not very nice, Wren. I'm the most powerful man on Nova Aurora. Did you really think you could outsmart me?"
Wren scoffed, her fear momentarily overshadowed by disbelief. "Delusional much? There are plenty of people more powerful than you."
Arvox's eyes narrowed, and for a moment, his mask of calm slipped, revealing a glimpse of the cold fury simmering beneath. "You're pretty brave for someone in your position. But don'tworry—Rylan will have a choice to make soon. Cooperate with my plans or lose you forever."
Wren's blood ran ice cold. "What plans?"
Arvox's smirk returned, but he didn't answer. The SUV sped through the city, the landscape blurring outside the window. Wren focused on her breathing, trying to steady her racing heart.Rylan, please. Find me.She sent the thought through their bond, praying it would reach him.
The drive felt like an eternity, but eventually, the city gave way to the Ice Mountains, their jagged peaks looming in the distance. The air grew colder, and Wren shivered, her arms still bound behind her back. The SUV finally stopped in front of an abandoned building, its windows darkened and its walls crumbling.
The men dragged her out of the vehicle, their grips unrelenting. Wren stumbled continuously as they forced her toward the building.
"What are you going to do with me?" she demanded, her voice laced with defiance.
Arvox stepped out of the SUV, his polished shoes crunching on the gravel. He walked up to her, his icy gaze boring into hers. "For now, you're leverage. But if Rylan doesn't cooperate… well, let's just say you won't live to see tomorrow."
Wren's stomach twisted violently, but she made herself meet his gaze, her eyes blazing with fierce determination. "You're making a mistake, Arvox. Rylan will come for me. And when he does, you're finished."
Arvox laughed, a cold, hollow sound that echoed in the stillness of the mountain air. "We'll see about that."
TWENTY-FOUR
RYLAN
Rylan weaved through the treacherous obstacles of the final round's simulation with fluid precision, his muscles coiling and releasing like a perfectly calibrated machine. Every leap across the collapsing platforms, every dodge around the rogue programs—it felt almost meditative after years of competing solo. His tiger instincts guided him through the maze of shifting walls and simulated debris, each movement calculated yet instinctive.
Almost there,he thought, anticipation thrumming through his veins. Just a few more checkpoints and they'd claim victory. The scoreboard would flash their names, and he'd finally get to announce to the entire planet that Wren was his mate. The thought sent a surge of possessive pride through his chest.
He vaulted over a crumbling ledge, landed in a perfect crouch, and sprinted toward the next checkpoint. The moment his boots crossed the threshold, his comms crackled back to life.
"Wren, that leg went better than—" He paused, waiting for her voice to fill his earpiece with that quick wit and brilliant analysis he'd grown addicted to.
Silence.
"Wren?" His stride faltered. "Come in, beautiful."
Nothing.
Rylan's gaze snapped upward to the command center, scanning the partitioned stations until he found hers. Empty. The chair sat vacant, and her console was dark.
"What the hell?"
Suddenly, a crushing weight slammed into his chest—not physical pain, but something far worse. Panic, terror, and desperation flooded his system through their mate bond. His knees nearly buckled as Wren's emotions crashed over him like a tsunami.
I'm in trouble. Find me.
Her voice echoed through his consciousness, faint but desperate. His tiger roared beneath his skin as protective rage blazed through every nerve.
Before he could bolt from the arena, alarms shrieked through Defense Nexus—not the cyber attack warnings he'd grown familiar with, but the bone-chilling wail of physical breach protocols.
"Shit." Real civilians were in danger now. The irony wasn't lost on him—he'd spent the morning saving virtual lives while real ones now hung in the balance.
